Biden: Vaccine for All Adults in May   03/03 06:18

   President Joe Biden said the U.S. expects to take delivery of enough 
coronavirus vaccine for all adults by the end of May -- two months earlier than 
anticipated -- and he pushed states to get at least one shot into the arms of 
teachers by the end of March to hasten school reopenings.

   WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Joe Biden said the U.S. expects to take 
delivery of enough coronavirus vaccine for all adults by the end of May --- two 
months earlier than anticipated --- and he pushed states to get at least one 
shot into the arms of teachers by the end of March to hasten school reopenings.

   Biden also announced Tuesday that drugmaker Merck will help produce rival 
Johnson & Johnson's newly approved one-shot vaccine, likening the partnership 
between the two drug companies to the spirit of national cooperation during 
World War II.

   "We're now on track to have enough vaccine supply for every adult in America 
by the end of May," Biden said.

   Despite the stepped-up pace of vaccine production, the work of inoculating 
Americans could extend well into the summer, officials said, depending both on 
the government's capacity to deliver doses and Americans' willingness to roll 
up their sleeves.

   Biden's announcements quickly raised expectations for when the nation could 
safely emerge from the pandemic with the promise of speedier vaccinations, but 
even as he expressed optimism, Biden quickly tempered the outlook for a return 
to life as it was before the virus hit.

   "I've been cautioned not to give an answer to that because we don't know for 
sure," Biden said, before saying his hope for a return to normal was sometime 
before "this time next year."

   As Biden spoke, states across the country were moving to relax virus-related 
restrictions. This despite the objections of the White House and the nation's 
top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, who have warned against any 
relaxation of virus protocols until more Americans are vaccinated.

   In Texas, GOP Gov. Greg Abbott moved to lift his state's mask-wearing 
mandate and a host of other limitations. Michigan's Democratic Gov. Gretchen 
Whitmer eased capacity limits on restaurants and both public and residential 
gatherings.

   Fauci has previously said the nation must achieve a vaccination rate of 
about 80% to reach "herd immunity." Only about 8% of the population has been 
fully vaccinated, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 
though the pace of vaccination has been increasing. The U.S. set a new daily 
record for injections last Thursday and Friday.

   In hopes of increasing vaccinations even further. the Biden administration 
told governors to make preparations to administer even more doses in the coming 
weeks. More shots are also headed toward the federally backed program to 
administer doses in retail pharmacies, which federal officials believe can 
double or triple their pace of vaccination.

   More than 800,000 doses of the J&J vaccine will also be distributed this 
week to pharmacies, on top of the 2.4 million they are now getting from Pfizer 
and Moderna.

   Those pharmacies will be key in getting the vaccines into the arms of 
teachers --- particularly in the roughly 20 states where they have not been 
prioritized for shots. The aim is to help reopen schools to better educate 
students who have been at risk of falling behind during the pandemic and reduce 
the burden on parents who have had to choose between childcare and a job.

   "Let's treat in-person learning as the essential service that it is," Biden 
said. Teachers will be able to sign up directly through participating retail 
pharmacies, the administration said.

   White House press secretary Jen Psaki also announced Tuesday that the 
federal government was increasing supply of the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines to 
states next week to 15.2 million doses per week, up from 14.5 million 
previously. States will also receive 2.8 million doses of the J&J shot this 
week.

   On a call with governors Tuesday, White House coronavirus coordinator Jeff 
Zients said states should prepare to administer 16 million to 17 million total 
weekly doses of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines by the end of March, climbing to 17 
million to 18 million weekly by early April. The supply of J&J doses to states, 
expected to dip after the initial shipment this week, will climb to 4 million 
to 6 million weekly doses by the end of March and 5 million to 6 million doses 
weekly through the end of April.

   Officials have said J&J faced unexpected production issues with its vaccine 
and produced only 3.9 million doses before being cleared for emergency use 
authorization on Saturday. The company has promised to deliver 100 million 
doses by the end of June.

   Before the approval of the J&J shot, Biden had suggested that it would take 
until the end of July to have enough vaccine for every adult in the U.S.

   Facing questions about the company's slipping delivery schedule, J&J Vice 
President Richard Nettles told lawmakers on Capitol Hill last week that the 
company had faced "significant challenges" because of its "highly complex" 
manufacturing process.

   Psaki said that an "across-the-administration effort" was required to get 
the two historic rivals to work together on the vaccines, even though 
conversations between J&J and Merck have been going on for months.

   "There's a difference between conversations and it moving forward," she said.

   The White House said Merck would devote two plants to the production 
process. One would make the vaccine and the other would handle inserting the 
vaccine into vials and ensuring strict quality controls. Psaki said the Biden 
administration was using its powers under the Defense Production Act to help 
Merck retool to work on the production.

   Still it was not immediately clear when the effect of Merck's assistance 
would be reflected in supply. Federal officials have cautioned that setting up 
the highly specialized manufacturing lines to produce vaccines would take 
months.

   Compared to the two-dose versions produced by Moderna and Pfizer, the J&J 
vaccine is less resource-intensive to distribute and administer, making it 
critical for U.S. plans to spread vaccinations around the world --- but only 
once Americans are inoculated. The J&J vaccine can be stored for months at 
refrigerated temperatures, rather than frozen, and doesn't require patients to 
return for a second dose three or four weeks later.

   J&J has set up a global production network that includes brewing bulk 
vaccine at its Janssen facility in the Netherlands, and with a company in the 
U.S., Emergent BioSolutions, and another in India, Biological E. Ltd. Other 
contract manufacturers are lined up to help with later steps, including putting 
the vaccine into vials, in the U.S., Italy, Spain and South Africa.

   In the scramble to create COVID-19 vaccines, the three Western drug makers 
who've dominated the vaccine industry for decades --- Merck & Co., Sanofi and 
GlaxoSmithKline --- surprisingly all fell short. Merck halted its own plans to 
develop a coronavirus vaccine earlier this year, finding that their candidates 
were generating an inferior immune system response compared with other 
vaccines. It said it would instead focus its work on developing treatments for 
COVID-19.

   Now, amid the global clamor for more vaccine doses, those heavyweights are 
helping manufacture doses for less-experienced rivals whose vaccines won the 
first emergency authorizations from regulators.

   Merck has since said it was in talks to help other drug companies with 
vaccine production, but wouldn't say Tuesday whether other deals are imminent.

   "Merck remains steadfast in our commitment to contribute to the global 
response to the pandemic and to preparing to address future pandemics," the 
Kenilworth, New Jersey-based company said in a statement.




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